School board hires attorney

Split vote ends weeks of fevered discussion

By Alex Burness Reporter-Herald Staff Writer

Posted:
02/05/2014 10:56:46 PM MST

After months of speculation and very public debate, the Thompson School District Board of Education voted 4-3 Wednesday to hire attorney and charter school expert Brad Miller for legal counsel separate from that already provided to the district's administration.

The motion passed despite several last-ditch efforts by the board minority. Board member Pam Howard lost on a motion for public comment to be allowed before any potential action on the issue of a board attorney. Board member Denise Montagu then lost on a motion to postpone indefinitely the hiring of Miller. Finally, Howard was shot down on a motion to hire Miller exclusively as a consultant on charter-related issues.

After close to three hours of discussion, which included a lengthy and often tense vetting of Miller by the board, a motion was entertained to officially hire Miller's office. As has been the case on all but one board vote since December, that motion passed by a 4-3 margin.

Board member Donna Rice said she's "grateful, thankful and excited" to be bringing Miller on, and urged the crowd to "support us in bringing about change in our student achievement."

But for minority voices Montagu, Howard and board member Lori Hvizda Ward, the essential definition of that change is still unclear.

"I'm confused about the need," Montagu said. "I've been presented with absolutely zero evidence that (hiring Miller) is something that would be a good thing for this board to do .

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.. The process reeks to people."

Howard called the process "a nightmare."

"We have not provided the citizens, the voters, the taxpayers with any sort of need analysis," she said. "This is a travesty of justice."

Hvizda Ward said she has "no idea whatsoever" what Board President Bob Kerrigan's camp has planned, and made clear that Miller hasn't yet impressed upon her any necessity for his particular services.

"I personally was not impressed with the level of Mr. Miller's expertise," she said. "And I was not impressed with Mr. Miller's knowledge of our school district ... I've been presented with no valid reason by my colleagues on the board or anybody in the public.

"I think the hiring of a separate counsel sets up an adversarial relationship between the board and the school district," she added.

Miller, who co-founded the consulting firm Charter School Solutions and currently represents Jefferson County and Falcon 49 school districts, told the crowd Wednesday evening that he has no plans to "charterize" the district, despite his being labeled by many is Thompson as an unequivocal charter champion who'd present a conflict of interest to the board.

On entering a district where so many community members already distrust him, Miller said, "Often lawyers have to be the point of a spear. I don't come with an agenda, but I understand I'm associated with an agenda."

Following the discussion around Miller, the board heard from representatives from both of Thompson's charter schools. Those presentations had not yet ended at press time.